Irreconcilable forces in China
The roots of this week's violence go back. Way back.
Trouble erupts in Xinjiang periodically, as it does in Tibet, because two unreconcilable forces are at work against each other. One is the desire of ethnic, linguistic and racial minorities for real autonomy, if not independence, to keep their culture and traditions alive.
The other is China’s age-old obsession with keeping the empire together. For thousands of years China has fallen apart into warring states, only to unite again under a strong emperor. “States cleave asunder and then coalesce,” is the way China’s classic 14th-century epic “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms” puts it.
By 1940 China was split into three kingdoms by Chiang Kai-Shek, Mao and the Japanese who overran the coast and set up their own puppet government in Manchuria. The Japanese were driven out, Mao prevailed over Chiang, and neither Tibet nor Xinjiang have never really enjoyed a moment’s autonomy ever since. But a strong emperor had once again reunited most of China.
The Chinese looked on with horror as the Soviet Union disintegrated, and all the Muslim Khanates of Central Asia were reborn again as independent countries. They became determined not to let it happen to them.
In Xinjiang oil and gas have replaced jade as commodities the Chinese don’t want to let go of, and the resurgence of Islam as a political force is another threat to their kingdom, as the Chinese see it.
The triumph of more technologically advanced societies over less was completed in the 19th century. The 20th century saw an age of mass decolonialization. China’s humiliation at the hands of foreigners has ended, but the Chinese are not willing to see themselves as foreigners in Xinjiang or Tibet.
Having gained control over its own destiny, China is determined to remain united and a world power. But the resistance of peoples who bridle under what they consider an occupying power continues, as it always has.
Read more from columnist HDS Greenway:
In Afghanistan, lessons from empires past
US should respond carefully to Iran crisis
Editor's note: This story was updated to correct spelling errors.
Recent on Worldview:
Opinion: China has a President Hu, now Europe chooses President Who?
Michael Goldfarb - Worldview - November 20, 2009 21:12 ET
The process of elimination that led to Van Rompuy's appointment represents all that is institutionally wrong with the European Union.
Opinion: Silenced in the Sahara
Timothy Kustusch - Worldview - November 20, 2009 10:52 ET
"Saharawi Gandhi" was expelled from the Western Sahara and is now on hunger strike.
Opinion: How to finance the war in Afghanistan?
C.M. Sennot - Worldview - November 20, 2009 06:32 ET
A question that, for Obama, is likely to hit home all the way over there in China.
Opinion: How best to get things done in Afghanistan and elsewhere
Mort Rosenblum - Worldview - November 19, 2009 12:35 ET
Or, the art of speaking loudly behind a door firmly closed.
Opinion: In France, l’Etat is no longer moi
Mort Rosenblum - Worldview - November 17, 2009 06:41 ET
Dodging corruption charges and facing jail time, French leaders go out of their way to give Louis XIV a bad name.
International visitors buoy US tourism industry
Susan E. Reed - Worldview - November 15, 2009 09:30 ET
Despite dreary economic times, a favorable exchange rate beckons foreign tourists to the majestic Grand Circle and beyond.
Opinion: Everyone missed signs of change in eastern Europe
Tom Fenton - Worldview - November 14, 2009 16:43 ET
While reporters did not foresee the fall of the Berlin Wall, the on-the-ground reporting was important.
"Damned United" and the tragedy at Leeds
Mark Starr - Sports - November 13, 2009 21:56 ET
A genuine soccer movie tells the story of Brian Clough, the greatest soccer coach in England to never coach the national team.
Opinion: Nigeria proposes reform of oil industry
John Campbell - Worldview - November 12, 2009 15:39 ET
President Yar'Adua puts forward new legislation but it looks unlikely to effectively reform the industry.
Opinion: Stuck in neutral?
Michael Moran - Worldview - November 12, 2009 06:42 ET
Some Europeans who steered clear of the Cold War may be wavering 20 years later.
The European School: a microcosm of EU integration
William Echikson - Worldview - November 11, 2009 19:32 ET
Czech and Slovak students don't dwell on their countries' communist past.
.jpg)
Opinion: How history's first draft got it wrong
Michael Goldfarb - Worldview - November 11, 2009 12:34 ET
The fall of communism in eastern Europe was not, as Francis Fukuyama wrote, "the end of history."
Opinion: Gay rights go global
Peter Tatchell - Worldview - November 11, 2009 09:22 ET
Homophobia still rules much of the world, but gay people are winning gains in nearly every country.
How 'bout them apples?
C.M. Sennott - Worldview - November 11, 2009 08:24 ET
The U.S. can't compete with China's cheap labor costs and mega orchards in the global apple trade.
Opinion: How consumer choices can drive environmental change
Stephan Faris - Global Green - November 10, 2009 11:38 ET
When businesses realize that eco-friendly alternatives will help their bottom line, they take action.
Opinion: Incorporating lessons from Iraq
Mort Rosenblum - Worldview - November 10, 2009 06:55 ET
Rather than destroying a country in order to save it, turn to the hard slog of nation-building.
.jpg)
Opinion: The day after the Wall fell
Michael Moran - Worldview - November 9, 2009 17:55 ET
The fears of Germany and its neighbors in 1989 have largely been resolved by 2009.
Opinion: ALS, Lou Gehrig and Michael
Mark Starr - Worldview - November 8, 2009 10:16 ET
How one man's struggle with ALS called on Major League Baseball to take a stand.
Opinion: "Old fox" Mugabe outwits others
Douglas Rogers - Worldview - November 8, 2009 09:56 ET
Power-sharing government achieves some improvements but Mugabe still rules with iron fist.
Opinion: Why sanctions aren't the answer for Iran
Joel Brinkley - Worldview - November 6, 2009 15:45 ET
America needs to understand that punitive measures aren't going to keep Iran in check. Not when Russia and China have a lot to lose.
Watch GlobalPost videos:
Reporter's Notebook
The Fort Hood killings and the consequences of Major Nidal Hasan’s horrific deed are destined to spread far and wide. On one level are the...Read more >
From the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s to today's conflict in Iraq, it seems that in most wars a hotel provides a stage set for a cast of characters...Read more >
Yet another World Economic Forum attendee has sounded a note of hope. The secretary general of the Arab League, Amre Moussa, said to me: "Oh...Read more >
Featured: Special Projects
After the Fall:
20 years since the Berlin Wall came down
Life, Death and the Taliban:
Videos and stories
Study Abroad:
Students report from the road
Living in the Shadows:
An intimate look at China's migrant workers
A World of Trouble:
The global economy in 20 hotspots
Global Blogs:
Comments:
No Comments.
Login or Register to post comments